Virtual Private Local Area Network (LAN) Service (VPLS) is a class of Virtual Private Network (VPNs) supporting the connection of different sites in a single bridged domain via Internet Protocol (IP)/Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) networks, thereby allowing different sites to communicate as if connected to a common LAN. In VPLS, the LAN at each of the different sites is extended to the edge of the provider network, and the service provider emulates a bridge or switch to connect the different LANs of the different sites in order to create a single bridged LAN. In VPLS, any-to-any connectivity and communications between different sites may be supported. There are two VPLS implementations that are supported by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as follows: RFC 4761 which uses Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) signaling and RFC 4762 which uses Label Distribution Protocol (LDP) signaling.
Hierarchical VPLS (H-VPLS) has been introduced to provide several scaling and operational advantages over traditional VPLS. The scaling advantages of H-VPLS are obtained by introducing hierarchy to VPLS, thereby eliminating the need for a full mesh of pseudowires (PWs) and Label Switched Paths (LSPs) between all participating devices. For example, the hierarchy may be provided by augmenting a base VPLS core mesh of PE-to-PE PWs (referred to as hub PWs) with access PWs (referred to as spoke PWs) to form a two-tier hierarchical VPLS model. The operational advantages of H-VPLS may include centralization of major functions in PE routers (e.g., VPLS endpoint auto-discovery, participation in a routed backbone, and the like), centralization of provisioning, and the like.
Given the increasing use of H-VPLS to provide VPLS services within service provider networks, a complete VPLS solution must provide support for both access resiliency and H-VPLS resiliency. Disadvantageously, however, while solutions for providing these types of resiliency exist today, such solutions are fragmented and unrelated to each other and, thus, must be configured and managed independently. For example, existing solutions for providing access resiliency may include using a multi-chassis (MC) link aggregation group (LAG) solution (MC-LAG) or using a Management VPLS using a Spanning Tree Protocol (STP). For example, existing solutions for providing H-VPLS resiliency may include various LDP-based solutions, such as using active/standby PWs, a multi-chassis endpoint (MC-EP) solution, or using a Management VPLS using an STP.